Spellbinding
by The Ghoul In Pajamas
Summary: Every day he was with her,stirring in her soul. She hide it, lied for it,locked it away. Her secret.But Ginny will again meet her angel,her demon and her greatest temptation. Can Harry stop it all in time.
1. Prologue to Spellbinding

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything but my imagination. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Thank you!

**Prologue**

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Every day he was with her, stirring in her soul. For years she'd hidden it away, from the ones she loved. She lied for him always; locking out that cursed part of her soul that would forever belong to Tom. No one could ever discover…the truth. Not even her mother. But what shall unfold when Ginerva is unaware, that she will sadly become a part of the greatest plan. Is there a force greater than love. Who shall save her, when the hour comes……

_.....To read more, please visit this story's designed profile, prologue and theme song on the author's page under **"Spellbinding"**_


	2. Page 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. this is not meant to be a long story only a one hitter I've been waiting to post. so we'll see how it goes. Enjoy!

_**Author's Note: **__For theme song to this story visit my profile._

******Spellbinding**

**Chapter 1**

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There are those who do terrible things in this world,

and those who will do terrible things in this world....

she will do neither....

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The night was darker as a storm grew nearer, blocking out the moon and stars. A mist rose eerily from the grounds of the Dark Forest. The shadows clung to the tree branches so that even they seemed alive with movement.

A wolf howled in the distant past the hilltops. It could have been a wolf, whose to say, but if you knew the tale and the stories, then you also knew that there were not ordinary wolves in the Dark Forest.

A single owl glided across the sky, weaving in and out of the tree trunks above, a second owl appeared and then a third. The first owl with its keen vison and red piercing eyes, spotted the other two. And Voldemort knew one could only be his lover Bellatix and the other Knott. The first owl glided forward and settled on the hard ground of an open field and began to change form. Its wings and claws melted into arms and legs. Its chest expanded and enlarged into that of a man. Its dark smoky grey feathers became a long and flowing cloak, perfectly hooded, hiding the hideous creature beneath it until his transformation was complete. His eyes, however, remained lifeless, red as the coals of hell.

He looked upon the crowd of death eaters. They did not fear him, the others. He was their Lord and master, and would lead them to greatness, with the world of muggles and muggle-lovers crawling at their feet. And so, they gathered around him, silently, each and every one of them with a serious look upon their face, each with a murder hidden in their eyes.

Voldemort looked at his army. These few were his most trusted of followers. And they deserved more than this low and ugly life he had given them so far.

"Welcome, I thank all of you for your loyalty, you have come, when you are called upon. For this, you shall be rewarded, you all shall be crowned the guardians of our world, our new way of life. You humble me with your strength and desire to kill all that shall stand in our way. I am honored to call you my brother, my sister." he turned towards the cloaked form he knew to be Bellatrix "And my devoted lover." he said.

Was he evil, Yes. But his voice when it came was beautiful. Deeply, filled with knowledge that many of them could only dream of having and with the ending of each sentence there it was, the serpent of his soul, hissing back with his voice.

"I have seen the fall of our Ministry, It is weaker now, and for this we are stronger. This is the year, when the world will know we are here, forever…"

A strong wind picked up and a army of oversized vampire bats turned downward from the clouds. Spreading they're wings across the land.

But not all would side with The Dark Lord, many did not want to plunder and feed upon the innocent with such cold destruction. Murdering without a true need to feed, turning children. To turn a child was unlawful for them. But, for the hundred or so that sided with Voldemort, they did not care for laws designed to protect humans. They were food and a child was considered a tiny snack.

"All of you must know this, the boy Harry Potter will die, I have discovered his weakness." Voldemort tapped the temple of his own head. He had become very aware of the connection between the boy's mind his own. And for him, it meant danger. His plans could be as easily interpreted as Potter's. He did not like the idea of anyone in his head. "Your mission will be to hunt and destroy, anyone with a connection to Harry Potter. Show no pity, for if you are captured know this. They will show no mercy with your brother. My sources have come back with news that the boy will not return to Hogwarts." Voldemort laughed coldly, walked forward and turned, his cloak floated behind him as if it too were magic. "Without the old man he his nothing. A mere frighten boy, and it was I that brought on the destruction of the once powerful Dumbledore. He, that was so feared by many…but we did not fear him did we?"

No..No

No…no

No

"I said we did not fear him did we?"

Again they responded, No.

"Noooo…we did not. His words was no man's law. It was a measure of respect from those to weak, that gave him his power. And that filthy thing called _love_, made him weak in return.... so easy to destroy." said Voldemort. Lucius and Voldemort exchanged a long look. They spoke on a private mental path. Lucius, then lowered his hood and bowed out to leave, and to do as his master ordered.

He stopped once again and looked over their faces, his red eyes probing, piercing their minds for stray thoughts. "I am not afraid to die," his nostrils flared "I fight with the oldest beast. I am at war as we speak. Too many have learned of my secrets."

From his cloak he removed a battered leather book, ruined stained with the poisonous blood of the basilisks venom. He tossed it onto the ground. It was taken from Dumbledore's office the night of his death. "There is a liar among us, he is the weak link stopping us from claiming back our world."

The wizard looked directly into the eyes of the half-blood prince, and slowly he nodded accepting his fate. Severus, had always been one of his most loyal. Voldemort had his suspension about the potions master. If Severus could be capable of betrayal; he after a life of such devotion, and service, then any of them could. When Voldemort spoke again he spoke to them all, as his family. "Do you take this task of your own free will?"

In unison they chanted yes, yes my Lord.

"After I have gone, my son will take my place. He will be young and inexperienced, but you must teach him and when he comes of age you shall feed him my blood, so that I may bring forth his mightiness and fill him with great powers. My seed, my son, your new Dark Lord is awaiting to be born."

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Author's Note: Thank you for reading please leave a review....


	3. Page 2

**Page 2**

**Spellbinding**

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The cobbled pavements of Diagon Alley was packed, families entering the stores. Fathers reprimanding their youngest ones. The downfall of the famous wizarding boulevard had not yet happened, and it was alive, bright and cheerful. Just the way he often remembered it to be. But, in all honesty he hated the fools that scattered about, shopping so care free. If they only knew… Would they be so like fluttering butterflies then?

_Her_…he looked over at a plump little witch that was sampling ice cream from Florean's Ice Cream Parlor. Would run for her bloody life. Or the strange fellow there, refilling his cage with white mice, would no likely shit his britches. If he had any idea who the young man was walking past them now.

A dreary shower had just past the narrow roads and alleys, line with it's many shops, leaving behind a glistening freshness. The storm came suddenly and left without warning. It was because of him that it had ended. And when his feet hit the pavement. The rain stopped on command. He didn't like getting wet.

Trash littered the dark sector he would have to take to enter Knockturn Alley. Perhaps later he thought inwardly, not right now, there were other matters needing his immediate attention.

A stray rat ran along the gutters of the Magical Menagerie's rooftop. Tom looked up, and he knew it had to be Peter. He was such an imbecile even with his best efforts at heart. Hadn't he told the fool, to wait for him at Borgins and Burke's. Why was he wandering about?

The young wizard moved along silently. Not speaking to any of the passerby's, only stepping aside as they continued on with their busy afternoon. He wasn't a complete asshole, unless it was required for him to be. He was always sociably admirable at best. Never a prick!

With his smart attire on, he clearly fitted the surrounding crowd. There was no true need to risk being spotted after all. But, he hardly doubted that anyone could, or would recall his younger face. All though, this was a bold and daring chance to take all the same. But Peter had found him, just as he apparated before the eatery of Knockturn Alley.

"_It is her master, the girl she's here. In the Apothecary shop…she's here master."_

_Voldemort gave an evil smile "Very good Peter, return and fetch the last of the polyjuice potion and wait for me as instructed, I shall join you and the others shortly." Voldemort commanded. Pettigrew bowed with obedience and returned within moments carrying with him a dark bottle. Corked, and nearly empty._

Now, Voldemort passed a young blonde witch, and he knew her eyes watched him as he strutted past her, making his way up the busy street. "Well…hello there." she said as young Tom smiled back and continued on.

Several shoppers passed him and nodded kindly. They couldn't make him out, not in the least, he was a stranger among them. Brilliant, he thought. The last of his potion had done its job. Thankfully this would be the last time he needed the revolting brew. He had used the last of his saved hair follicles, in this last batch. But with Dumbledore finally out of the picture. There would be no need, he was more feared now than ever.

And to add to his promising future, his sweet Bellatrix had returned to him the one thing he knew had been abolished. The first horcrux that had been destroyed. The Diary. It was bloody stupid of him to have not thought of this plan the moment he received it…Such precious time had been wasted, no bother! It was set in motion now. What ever magic the old man and the boy had been used to destroy his book, had done just that. In the beginning, Voldemort believed it utterly useless, until the night Bellatrix was toying with the book while accompanying him in his chamber. She open the book to find several passages that had not been pierced by the fang, three to be exact. Three remarkable pages still held life within them. Untouched. The first page, of the three read, _Property of Ginevra Molly Weasley_.

The other horcruxes were safely hidden. He wouldn't risk exposing them. This one was weak, and damaged but would have to do. He would soon know if his suspensions were correct as to why she was a part of his book. His eyes glittered with a strange red flame as the sun light touched his teenaged face. He wasn't certain he would find her, but he was determined to try. He had little time left and the effects of the potion would fade away. He could never approach the girl in his true form.

Lately, he could feel his death approaching in each step he took.

There had to be another way. He would not defeat the Potter boy. He hated to admit it, but he could feel the worse was coming for him. He dreamt of it often, even seen his own grave. The heavy wooly shadow of _The Grim _laid upon it. Panting heavily, waiting for his arrival. Its hollow eyes looked back into his, and he usually woke up at that moment, it was the worse omen to receive.

This would be the place. He thought looking up at the sign above the shop. _The Apothecary _it read_. _This is where Peter had spotted the Weasley girl.

He entered the shop's front door.


	4. Page 3

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. This is not meant to be a long story only a one hitter I've been waiting to post. Enjoy!

_"His knowledge remained woefully incomplete, Harry! That which Voldemort does not value, he takes no trouble to comprehend. Of house-elves and children's tales, of love, loyalty and innocence, Voldemort knows and understands nothing. Nothing. That they all have a power beyond his own, a power beyond the reach of any magic, is a truth that he has never grasped." _**~Albus Dumbledore**

**Page 3**

**Spellbinding**

The whistle was low, very low and very smooth. Yet, she heard it clearly through the crowd of the Apothecary. The older witch behind the counter shouted back a measurement for a wizard standing beside her. In return another order was shouted out, by a rather skinny women with two small boys.

If Ginny didn't know better she would be right to assume that the entire market was on sale. It made her think of a auction, with prices, and pounds of all sorts flying about her ears.

Her mother, Mrs. Weasley, was on the opposite end of the store, stocking up their supply of canned floo powder. But against the noise, again she picked up the soft familiar whistle.

It carried straight to her ears. The sound was like an old tune she recalled from another life, one she had forgotten, or misplaced. It was an intriguing sound at best, and the tone seemed to be pitched just for her, or so it seemed. It appeared that no one else seemed to notice the tender whistle.

Long, soft, and relaxed like a summer night's wind it come twice, the strange whistle. A low sound, so undetectable by the others around her. But it demanded her attention, and screamed for her acceptance of its presence. To be honest for her there was simply no other sound in the room.

"Hey," Ginny asked a younger boy standing to the left of her. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" he grimaced. Frowning look up at Ginny.

"You didn't just hear something like a long ..Er whistle. -" She asked and stopped…"There! There it is again, did you hear it now?"

"No you're not one o' those mental freaks are ye!" Said the smaller boy. "My dad says never to speak to people that can hear things in their heads." he stuck out his tongue and walked away.

She frowned, as it summoned her again, the soft little whistle. It drew her attention as nothing had in the past five years. The sound slipped past the sacks of herbs and sorted barrels of powders, past the buzzing conversations surrounding the busy little shop. It slipped past the hanging dragon roots that blocked her view. It slipped past everything and found its way to her, like an arrow aiming straight for her heart.

He had no way of knowing if she had in fact received his message. Voldemort could only assume that if she had engaged with the teenage boy that he once was, then she would know the sound.

It was the old code. One he had not used it in decades, but the Tom she knew would most definitely have used this method with her. The whistle was charmed, its magic embedded in any that followed him. A means of summoning his followers, Death eaters. Like that of the dark mark, this was also a way he left his signature. If she had known young Tom Riddle, then she knew this code.

His heart remained normal. He waited patiently. He waited to see, if he could summon her. -Again he whistled. . . .

Ginny went completely and utterly still, her heart beating faster than normal. An enormous globe container separated her from him. She tilted her head and stared into blur that was his face. His face unclear though the reflections of the glass, but she couldn't help but wonder.

To answer her curiosity, the misshapen figure stepped slightly away from the glass thing that divided them, and now, he could see her clearly, and she him. His dark black hair and smooth skin briefly made her imagine Harry Potter. That it had been him teasing her. But no, it was not Harry Potter.

This young wizard was taller, leaner and with darker eyes. Not green ones. He was extremely handsome, with strong features and a brilliant jaw structure. An uppity type sneer, or a rather bullish and unpleasant smile, like the ones worn by a too proud Slytherin.

As with any guy, Gryffindor or not, Ginny instantly could imagine how solid he would be beneath his shirt. But she fought away the temptation to appreciate his beauty.

Because the truth of this boy scared her senseless. This could not be real, she simply could not be here face to face with the most dangerous wizard in hundreds of years. And he was standing there smiling at her, as if this whole shenanigan was some sort of twisted little tea party.

Or that he'd never once tried to murder her and her friends.

"I am very fond of my sanity," she said as he came closer to her. "And I don't like to be the center of whatever game your at." she said "and neither would the Ministry." Her fear rising as he came nearer. His presence made her heart leap. "Crawl back into your hole or I swear I'll scream right now."

He stopped and examined the girl. Her red hair, her innocently shy freckles along her nose and that appalling sweater she wore. He thought that it should be burned immediately.

He took a step and she took two back.

Perhaps he was losing his mind, letting the youthfulness captivate him. He must not lose track of time, the potion's magic would be fading soon. He wished only to appear to her once, and once would be suffice for his plans. The vivid shade of her hair was breathtaking to him. It was so fresh, and alive with color, long and lapping her shoulders. One side softly braided and tuck behind her right ear. He wondered how it would feel to touch her hair.

"Did you hear me, did you hear me call for you Ginerva?" he asked stretching forth his arm he offered to her his open hand.

"That sound you made. It was annoying…" Ginny forced out the foolish question that she felt her heart answered for her. She then ignored his offer and frowned at his open palm. "who are you?"

Tom smiled. "Funny, I wanted to ask you the same thing." He said and walked freely behind the isles opposite to her.

She followed him but on a separate row. A blue vasculum, filled with spiders blocked her view now. She took another step and he was there again, clear and very real.

"What's your name?" she demanded of the boy.

"Don't you know?" he asked back.

Voldemort could see she carried a fool's bravery.

"No." she answered softly.

It was a lie, and he knew it. He entered her thoughts at that moment and found the answer he wanted, the answer she was so bravely hiding behind her eyes. She was fearless, and not easily frighten, he liked this, it was indeed a quality his son must possess. He had made the right choice. "Pity…I know who you are Ginerva." He said. "And that's such a lovely name by the way."

She did not respond to his compliment. The room stood still as he moved. She turned to see her mother measuring out more packages of herbs. When she turned back to face him this time, he had moved even closer, and he was inches from her now. The boy Tom had some how circled the counter's end and come to her, face to face, he stood nearly a foot taller than she and so close she could sense his body heat.

To her everything seemed to slow down, her thoughts were hazy as his eyes found hers. He was just as she remembered, and his closeness drew to him like a heavy slumber on a cold winter's night, should her mother turn around ….Ginny didn't want to think of that. What would she say, or what would happen?

He leaned downward and spoke into her ear. And she allowed it.

"Would you like to know my name?" his voice was soft, no higher than a whisper, and she did not know why, but she closed her eyes to the sound of his words, his breathing, his closeness.

"No." she shook her head, as his hand lifted her chin and she was lost, as her eyes found his.

There was no pretending that she didn't know who he was.

There was no pretending that he didn't know, she knew. He saw the flash of fear for only a second. And now he had been replaced by a second emotion. It was devotion and something more. Love. The filthy word laced his mind. He would have to smash this foolishness from her soul. He knew she was afraid, scared. But he could never gain her trust this way.

Any other time he would be a beast with those he ruled and commanded. A terrorist to anyone that could consider them selves fortunate enough to make their way onto his to do list. But he did not want her afraid of him, it would serve no purpose for his plan yet. And in fact could hinder the healthy conception of his child.

No, she would be different, she could not fear him. And there was no time to waste.

Her mother called out her name. "Ginny, Ginny you have my bag" said Molly Weasley fanned her hand, signaling for her daughter to hurry.

Molly had given her the knitted bag they often used when out shopping. It was a special sack her mother had charmed to carry loads of things, much like the ones she had seen Hermione use before.

Molly came over. "Well hello, I'm sorry my dear. I didn't know you had meet a friend here. Someone from school?" asked her mother.

Upon her entrance into their conversation Voldemort grew angry. He was under the impression that the young witch was here alone and unattended. Peter, had obviously gotten this important piece of information wrong.

The last thing he needed, was unwanted attention as he attempted to court and winned the girl away.

"School…Yes." lied Tom.

"No." interrupted Ginny quickly.

"Pleasure to meet you madam, you must be the lovely Mrs. Weasley. Ginny's Mother?" He extended his hand in a formal manner.

"Well yes I am…." Molly gave a timid smile as the young man lifted the upper side of her palm and gave it a simple kiss.

Mrs. Weasley blushed at the boy's politeness.

"Stop that!" demanded Ginny, snatching her mother's hand quickly from his pursed lips.

"Ginny Weasley!" shouted her mother in protest. "That was very rude of you...why ...he was only being polite."

"My apologies Ginerva," said Tom with a nod and a bow. "I didn't mean to offend-"

"Don't call me that name either, you don't have the right to."

"Ginny! What has gotten into you? " shouted Molly, she quickly grabbed hold of the knitted sack, still clenched in her daughter hand.

"Mother, please here's the bag…and could we please, just have a moment, -alone." said Ginny.

She, Ginny had turned scarlet red with anger, and Molly had set her lips for a good round with her

"Mother!" The look in her eyes told her mother that was enough. She handed over the sack containing their money.

It was difficult but Molly bit back her row with the girl's feistiness.

If this was a lover's spat she's best not include her self with such childish worries. Ginny waited for the brief interchange of goodbyes between Molly and Tom to end.

Ginny's smile then faltered and eventually died as her mother returned to pay the clerk behind the counter.

Ginny was going to get straight to it. Straight to business. This was Riddle that she was talking about, and that fact scared the living daylights out of her. But, this was her mother, and how dare he use her heart to play on such a lie in broad daylight.

"I want you to leave." she hissed. Without warning she saw the red demon rise in his eyes. A fiery flicker within their depths, within his soul.

Her voice was harsh, and filled with a threat that almost made him laugh at her boldness. Never before had anyone dare give him an order. Not since his days as a boy. Yet she ordered him about as if he was nothing to fear.

"_get out_!" she hissed again and launched forward, pushing against his chest. Demanding for him to leave the store at once. Her actions alarmed him and caught him by surprise. He stumbled slightly, and then He took a threatening step towards her and with one movement seized her, embracing her into his arms.

He didn't want to lose his temper with her, but his anger was closing in quickly. He held hard and firm, it was a sure warning for her not to test him. With both arms now locked at her waist, he had quickly proven his strength over hers, the fullness of her breast heaving and pressed into his. She was a young witch filled with fire and would be a delicious morsel when the time was right, and he planned to devour every inch of her.

She struggled against him, but he only held her closer. "_You let me go_. You're not him...you're not Tom. You'll never be Tom Riddle." She was shaking now, but would not cry for him, not for this thing holding her. She hated him, for breaking her heart this way.

He fell silent as she called his true name.

He swept her away into a dark mist. They were now in an abandoned room, away from the crowd, but not far, because she could still hear the chiming of the door bell beyond their darkness. It was a small room or closet, dark and dusty. A painted window allowed only thin streams of sunlight in. Dried bats wings and lizards hinds hung from the ceiling above.

The sudden and unexpected trip left her mind spinning, and he moved her against darkness of the room. His hand caught the wall behind her, to break her fall and he deposited her there.

She cursed the sun for not hiding how handsome he was. Looking down at her, he covered her lips with his finger. And shushed her attempted to scream for help.

Her neckline was the first to savor the fullness of his lips. Tom pressed his weight onto her and the wall behind her was his accomplice. Don't she whispered as his hands found the roundness of her breast, and gripped her firmly, his hands claimed her body, driving heat and desire into her and this took no effort on his part. She seemed to almost welcome his invasion. He remained silent has she opened to him more, he caressed her waist, beneath her homemade blouse he could feel the tightness of her abs. The gentle deep of her pelvis he knew lead to her ….

The Dark Lord wondered, what had happened between her and the Tom she thought she knew? Could she have developed feelings for the boy at some time?

She would not be the first, he handled many women in his life. But not at that age, not at sixteen. Voldemort knew that the Tom she loved was nothing more than a boy… innocent. Sneaky, conniving, and manipulative yes… But,….

His hands came up to claim the roundness of her young breast. So perfect they made his mouth water. Her firm body had a way of distracting him.

Had her Tom touched her this way before he wondered? No, he doubt it, he had no heart for girls when he was in school.

Voldemort's mind touched the inner thoughts of the mysterious young witch. Once there in her thoughts, he knew that she had always obeyed him. He could see how she cried for him the day their book had been destroyed.

He witnessed the great sadness she carried when she lost him forever… he was dead to her. He had died in the chamber and she knew the stranger holding her was not her Tom Riddle, no more than a beetle was a bug...He released her mind….

Male hunger began gnawing at him, and he allowed it to find him and consume him. She worked her hands, now free up to his chest, along his shirt, up to his neck. She cupped his face with her hands and he lifted his head slowly to look at her, to meet her eyes.

She kissed him softly at the corner of his lips.

He would take her here and now if he did not regain control over his desire.

She searched his dark eyes for even the slightest hint of a liar. She searched for the smallest detail to show her this was not her Tom and that she should fight, kick and scream for her life.

She needed a sign to say this was not his perfect nose, nor his true dark hair, so thick against her fingertips.

A red flame flickered in his eyes, and he felt her heart beating with such a frantic rhythm, he thought she would have a heart attack in his arms.

Her mind told him she had again seen the fire in his eyes. She closed her eyes and imagined it was never there, it was the sun from the window that lied to her. She kissed him, and her kiss overflowed with passion and love…Love. The idea of it made him want to vomit up the last of his dammed soul. But it swam in every corner of her foolish little mind. She had loved Tom. _-No, she did love him still, after so long..._ she could never find another to share her soul with. Never like him.

As she allowed him in, he used her weakness to his advantage. Time's, date's, names, everything he wanted to know and more was there for his disposal. He dranked deeply in the kisses she gave. Voldemort did not shield her thoughts, he allowed them to flow freely. They were hers after all, not his.


	5. Page 4

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. This is not meant to be a long story only a short one I've been waiting to post. Enjoy, and please read and review! I love reviews!

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**Page 4**

**Spellbinding**

The hallway was large, and it lead into the drawing room of the Malfoy Manor. In the drawing room would be where they would gather in discussion for their plans. Several had already been seated and their talk, circled as they always had; around the capture and destruction of Potter and his allies.

The drawing room was bath in darkness, the meeting being held was illuminated from a roaring fire, beneath a marble mantlepiece.

Darkness always suited Voldemort best. He never cared much for bright lighting, not even as a boy in the orphanage. Often as a child, if he was angry enough, or bored enough he would make the bulbs within the fixtures explode.

The other Death Eaters carried on their discussion, but in hushed, private conversations as they waited. But he, Voldemort sat deep in thought and spoke to no one. More death eaters slowly arrived. Each of them entered and looked up as the witch's body hovered above their meeting table.

As always they came as commanded. For this meeting, just as with the last, Voldemort had summoned only the selected few, only those he trusted the most to see his new plans through.

His youthful boyish disguise gone. And now the pale silhouette of the true Dark Lord sat at the very head of the table. He had not been to visit the girl for several days now. This displeased him.

A visit to her was not entirely impossible, but if he hoped to charm her, to win her spirit then he first must have the magic that was hidden in the horcrux, so that he may once again capture the image of the boy she knew as Tom Riddle. If there was any part of his former self dwelling within the diary's pages, he would have to draw it out.

But, was it possible to reclaim a portion of his one's own soul? once torn away and for so long, for so many years? The creation of a horcrux was tricky magic indeed, but it's purpose was to insure one's ability to maintain life after death. Not to be reclaimed during his living state. This was a form of magic most unheard of; even for the likes of his kind. But it his was is intentions to see it through. He was Lord Voldemort, and with him the most phenomenal of all magic was possible.

He remained silent, his attention was drawn upward to his captive revolving slowing above head and he was deep in thought his mind wandering, searching for the girl . . .

A long appalled silence ticked by as he blocked out the voices of the surrounding table. . .

Something was blocking him now, something had change or more it was someone had change it for him. Why did so much have to ride on the life of one boy, or on the death of his own? Why could it not circle around the life of another? Another boy per say, another dark lord, another chosen child. Yes, something other than the tiresome saga of he and Harry Potter. These sudden random thoughts puzzled him and he ended failed connection to Ginny. He himself wondered why. Was he at long last exhausted, tired or simply getting old as they say? What troubled him even more was a separate factor that he could not seem to set aside or forget for some time now.

Severus had told him that the girl, Ginny, was not the same after her encounter with the boy, Tom. And that she mourned after Harry's believed destruction of the diary.

The details of this paid no real tribute to any of his plans of course, non other than the mere fact that Dark Lord wanted to know as much about the girl as he could. Severus spoke of that year with great detail, of how she had confessed to Dumbledore that Tom would have never harmed her, and that it was only Harry he wanted. This relayed the direct message to Voldemort that the horcrux had done just as it was designed to do. To destroy anyone or anything that would in return cause it harm.

But, the boy of the diary had form some sort of alliance with the girl, the merger of another soul in desperate search for more power. _Or had he_ become attached to the company of another's soul simply being there, and that he had actually attempted to protect her, once she became a part of it.

No thought Voldemort, that would be impossible. Tom was only a memory, a portion of his soul, not mortal, not truly living. And certainly not capable of the wanting the very thing he had never once desired in his entire life.

* * *

The door opened and Severus entered the dark drawing room, his eyes adjusting to the sudden shift in lighting from the hallway, and slowly his attention was glided towards the head of the table, where Voldemort instructed him to be seated beside him.

The Dark Lord knew he held information not only of Potter, and of the Order, but also news of Ginerva.

Severus came has always with news to convey to the Dark Lord. He informed him of the approaching evening in which the Order had planned to move Harry.

"Good, Very good. And this information comes -" said Voldemort.

"-from the source we discussed," said Severus.

Their source, the one Severus spoke of, was of course Ginerva. She was as easy to pick as a morning daisy once under the Imperius curse. Voldemort's red glowing eyes narrowed and filled with satisfaction to the news. He didn't care where the boy departed after the Order's so called rescue party. However, he had received word that Potter's was to take room and board with the Weasley family, and he could not allow that. Potter had ruined so many of his plans, he could not allow him near the girl before his own work was done with her.

The battle between he and Potter had taken a new turn and Voldemort now fought for the girl.

* * *

Late in the night and long after the meeting had departed, there, in a softly lighted room, the words bleed along the charred surface of an open book, sketched with such a sharp haste, it couldn't be mistaken for anything short of anger.

Voldemort's demanded to be heard. It was late into the night now and the halls of the Manor, once again settle down to a meager crawl. Thick bold words took form, filling the first of the remaining three pages.

**I have given you all that I know. There is nothing more - and if so, I suggest you come and find them out for yourself, I have told you before I can not reenter the confinement of these pages, and that thing lurks beyond your chamber; it is death. It called out my name. **Wrote Voldemort

Silence fell, between the two Tom's. The younger one and the eldest delivering messages between their two worlds of existence. The constant rhythm of the wind outside, rattled the window panes to Voldemort's chamber.

Tom knew of the beast Voldemort spoke of. It was the Grim. The thing of death that now lurked among his pages each night. Tom had spoken to the creature only once, it had told him, that he sought the dark wizard Voldemort; the beast told him of his future being, and of the monster he had become, beyond the boy. And now Tom relayed the message back to the older man.

This particular horcrux had been his best by far. At the start of its creation he had been so young, and so it was more alive than the others. Voldemort could see that now. The smooth page of the diary appeared blank for some time before words once again reappeared.

Tom's words faded in and out of the page. _I have done no crime… I did not ask for this life…but I suffer from it because of you. I only wish to see that she is safe…._

**Stop your whining, no crime….have you forgotten you are the starting creation of what I am. Have you forgotten your hunger, your thirst for greatness against all, you have forgotten who and what you are… **Wrote Voldemort.

_No, I have not forgotten…. I am Tom, Tom Riddle that is all._

It had been days now and Voldemort could not find a way to summon the fragmented piece of his soul from the pages. It was as if it had taken on a life of its very own, capable of thinking for itself. He would have no choice but to force the foolish boy out. But this task proved to be possibly fatal. Each journey into the book left him ill and dreadfully weak. He was living, not a whole man but alive enough to suffer pain when he encountered the poison each time he enter and left the book. His only chance would be to coax the boy from the pages willingly. If he had to use magic to force him out it would destroy, perhaps even shatter the remains of the already battered soul.

Somewhere in the lower dwelling of a insolvent darkness sat the memory of a young Tom Riddle. Clenched tightly in his grasp, he held a single photograph. Tom kept the secret of the portrait to himself; He'd not share that part with Voldemort. He trusted no one, not even his future self. Tom sat crotched alone, upon the poorly made bed that Ginny had created for him. He sat reliving the only memory he fought to keep alive anymore, the face of a friend, a red-haired Gryffindor girl. He had forgotten everything else, everyone else. If the years had past like the old fool above said they had, then she was no longer the girl in his photograph, but a young woman now and even more lovely. The old man above said it was not possible for a memory hold a memory. But that was his problem if he didn't believe, because Ginny's sweet kindness came to comfort him each night in his dreams.

Pulling from the seared seams of his cloak pocket was a torn page, a slip of parchment. She had given it to him one day. The silly girl confessed to him that she charmed it to keep the words from fading away; she wanted them to always be there for him, to have when he needed her. He'd never cared for anyone in his life, least of all a Gryffindor, not the way he cared for Ginny.

"A Hundred Ways to say I love Tom Riddle, by Ginny Weasley," he read the title again and reread the slip of paper everyday they had been apart, until he had them memorized by heart. But each day now they began to grow fainter as the charm was wearing off, now half the page had vanished forever. He'd gone back into the ruins of the diary partly because he had heard voices. He had foolishly hoped it was help at last or perhaps his long lost Ginny, but no it was the pale snake like man and a crazy eyed witch. The wizard had told him that he too was named Tom Riddle.

After that encounter, he'd became trapped here in the chamber and he placed a soldering spell upon the doors to keep the poisonous venom at bay. And to keep the pale snake man out.

He was all that remain now. He, this room, her page and something else. That something was the Grim, the walking hound of death. Tom was sure of it. It followed him on Voldemort's last venture into the book, growling and snapping at both their heels, they had barely escaped.

Voldemort's words trickling down from the tarnished page.

**Do you dream of her boy?…wish for her?…your precious Ginny. I can give you whatever you desire. If you trust me. I will lead us to greatness.**

Tom wrote back. _Liar._

**Tell me, how will you ever touch her…ever love her? Think of it, I shall have finally beaten Potter, and you, you shall have your Ginny and I shall have my son, our heir….**

_-No, you will not touch her..._

Voldemort gave an evil grin, had he found the boy's weakness. He placed his quill upon the diary. **...And who shall stop me? **He wrote.


	6. Page 5

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy, and please read and review! I love reviews!

_Fools who wear their hearts proudly on their sleeves, who cannot control their emotions, who wallow in sad memories and allow themselves to be provoked this easily -- weak people, in other words -- they stand no chance against his powers!_

_**~Severus Snape**_

_Order of the Phoenix_

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Spellbinding**

It would take place today.

Last night was not a complete disaster, nor was it a complete victory and Voldemort was swelling with fury, he could not explain what happen during the attack, but Harry Potter had escaped him once again. Despite their lost, two victories were received. Above all, they had successfully managed to interfere with The Order's plans for the boy to arrive anywhere near the the girl; and that was his intention. Secondly, his men had done their very best and fought by his side with loyalty. The murder of the auror Alastor Moody, was a great triumph for them. There was not yet confirmation on the half-giant flying with the boy. But his fall surely was a fatal one.

Tom, was given the news of the deatheater's great battle against the Order.

For him, Potter's lost meant only one thing. His Ginny would be completely at the mercy of insane old man beyond the book. She would have no one to protect her. And so, Tom finally gave in to the Dark Lord's request. Tom fear was in the truth and truimph of the Death eaters. And he knew there was a great deal of truth in the things the older man had said. How could he ever have the chance to announce his love for Ginny locked away like a frightened child? How would he ever save her?

And so it was to be done. An age-old ritual would allow the unity of the two divided souls. But of course, the truth that Voldemort had given Tom was not the truth at all. What Tom did not fully understand, was that there was no existence for him outside the diary.

His existence, as unique as it may be was attached to that of other divided souls and they were all property of the Dark Lord. There was a great sense of sadness as the ritual took place before the other Deatheaters. For, as young Tom willingly left the pages, Yaxley destroyed its remains, and with it that part that was Ginny's. Tom had not discovered until it was too late the mistake he had made, that he had been lied too, tricked from its safety. And once the bonding was complete his very own existence would be lost for all time.

Voldemort was heartless and took no pity, not even for his the cries of his own soul. Voldemort cared nothing for the boy's state of heart and laughed at his plea's for understanding, cries of mercy for his beloved Ginny.

Like some spell or a mere enchantment, Tom was nothing more than this to the Dark Lord. A means of magic that was needed to complete his mission. The essence of the boy was required to create the perfect mirage, an exact mask to hide the Dark Lord's true monstrous one, so that he may move forward with his plans for his new life after death.

Inhuman and evilly forced, he devoured that missing part of his soul, as a Dementor would swallow one's existence away...

Most had never seen such a profoundly sinful thing unfold. So horrendous, that even his followers could not bare watch, and they looked away from fear. Bellatrix however looked eagerly into the face of her lord jeering and chanting him on, and after a moment or two, his lipless mouth curled into something like a satisfied smile and he laughed softly. Now that this small obstacle was behind him he would move on to the next level of his plans. Warm air blasted through the slits that were his nostrils. There was no real change in his features. Yet all at once something inside him changed completely. His hands flew up to cover his mouth and he dropped to the ground on his knees. Dark and broken blue veins raced like a spiders web along his transparent body.

Bellatrix and Yaxley rushed to his side at once. "My Lord what is wrong…My Lord."

He shoved past them, pushing them away. He would not give in to a mere side effect. Perhaps this was normal, he thought, his mind began to blur and fill with unfamiliar images. But, He was not afraid, not in the least. He had endured far more than this. Taken part in magic most would not dare behold.

"My Lord let me help you!"

He then stretched out like that of a lazy cat and vomited upon the ground. The pale tips of his fingers dug into the earth. Bellatrix backed away in fear. He vomited again and the evilness spread out upon the ground like an hideous stain, it grew wider and painted the land around them all. like a blemish upon the land.

"What can we do!" shouted the others, wanting to help, but wanting to flee. There cries exploded into a screaming choas as they began to cower and run, pulling their wands wildly, and firing to break the invisible wall surrounding them. It held them captive, the beauty of the light beyond their was forbidden to them and they couldn't pass the darkness.

Bellatrix looked first to Lucius and then to her sister, Narcissa.

Narcissa, was rooted with fear, and drew her son closer.

The earth at their feet became covered and tarnished by the darkness that poured from the Dark Lords lips, every blade of grass became blackened as ash and withered into nothing. The land had cursed, and they tried, but no one could escape.

Swallowing a gasp of revulsion, Lucius searched his mind for an answer, a way to free them. But he had none. Narcissa had never witness this form of magic and she screamed for her husband protection. Night fell upon them, an unnatural darkness, no moon, nor a star above offered them refuge.

The Dark Lord, hurled more of his sickness upon the ground.

Then suddenly there was a moment of silence and several things happened all at once. There was a quake and it shook the air around them. It rattled the soil at their feet and several Death eaters fell to the ground from fear.

Bellatrix saw the a slender young girl, washed in light, her skin was clean and creamy, not like the soot-aged complexion of her own. and then suddenly there stood a small goat-like creature at the head of her Dark Lord. It wore a horn like that of a unicorn, it's coat, covered with golden scales. It's thick mane and tail, shone bright like that of summer sand, as if it had stolen the sunrise and brought it to their feet. Its horn and hooves were also gold and its eyes were deep.

* * *

Narcissa entered the hallway, where her sister Bellatrix and Snape had been waiting. She dropped another load of ruined sheets into the waste bin by the entrance, and order Draco to remove it from the house, and burn them. It was the seventh time today she'd removed the linen from his bed. No form of cleaning spell or vanishing charm would remove the sickness; the sheets were ruined.

Bellatrix made a face of disgust, and turned from the stench as Draco passed.

Voldemort's sickness carried well into the night. The disgusting odor that came from his room was that of rot, a repulsive smell, completely unpleasant, and it descended into every part of the Manor.

"I don't understand what is happening to him? There is nothing there, nothing more for him give. He hasn't eaten for hours. He empty now...he will die if we don't stop it, Severus-do-something!" cried Bellatrix.

"I have done everything -we must let this...thing run it course!"

"It cannot run its course you fucking idiot. He'd have puke his guts out by morn." Bellatrix shouted back. She appeared completely drained from hours of worry, and so white, that even she was now pale from dread. "What in the hell was that thing out there?"

"I don't know." replied Narcissa suddenly, she leaned against the wall behind her. The attempted to rub the soreness in her aching neck but the smell from her own hands turned her stomach.

"Severus!" demanded Bellatrix. "What was it?"

Snape, was slumped over in a chair, his hands folded into a ball and his head resting on them. He looked up as he heard her scream his name. "It was a beast -" he answer back.

"What kind of beast Severus?" asked Narcissa

He let out a heavy sigh. "A beast unheard of, - least of all seen, an aerial creature… ancient. Some know it to be a Ki rin, a sort of omen."

"Another one of your fucking omens. _The Grim_, _a Ki rin_…what next a fucking hinkypunk! I don't give a fly off Merlin's ass what it was. Get your ass back to the pathetic school and bring us back a potion that works!

"Don't be absurd sister! Why keep dumping potions down him they are simply not working, Severus is right, let what ever this thing he has done, run its course, we'll wait it out until morning. There is nothing more that can be done." Said Narcissa.

Bellatrix bit back another load of explosive swear words. She did not like waiting, and she did not trust either of them with the wellbeing of her master. "You have until morning or I'll kill you both."

* * *

Voldemort was fast asleep, every now and again he would move. Severus had taken watch for the night and now he too had fallen asleep. It was well past midnight and the lights were out in all the house. Voldemort's eyes shot open in the darkness and searched the room. Where was he? He did not recognize his surrounding. He shut his yes again and licked his lips, they felt strange and he was dieing of thirst. "_Water_," his voice was low and very weak _"…water_" he begged again.

From the darkness came a hand, lifting him, placing a glass to his frail thin lips and he drank.

His spidery fingertips closed in around Severus's wrist to help steady the glass. Slowly he forced his muscle to obey, forced them to work for him as he aided the stranger that offered him the glass. The terrible tension was beginning to leave his body, so that he could breathe easier now.

Snape lowered the Dark Lord's head back against the bed. He was very pale, so vague of color his skin appeared pearly beneath the moonlight.

Severus, simply did not speak. He was not sure of which direction the magic had gone. He was not a wizard suited for magic such as this, it was beyond his level. He was a potion's master, he knew only of medicine, roots and tonics. Not this area of magic. This was best suited for the likes of Dumbledore. But, his old friend was not with him now.

The Dark Lord looked up, after Severus lowered the glass.

"My Lord, can you hear me?" said Severus.

His eyes, Severus notice were not filled with the redness. They were life-like, almost normal, black as coal against the wizard pale skin, but normal and surely not the eyes of Voldemort.

"_He's sleeping_." The words his master mumble back were low, but they came from his own lips, then he rolled onto his side, covered his head and went back to sleep.

* * *

_If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love._

_**~Albus Dumbledore**__Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone_

**Author's Note:** Thanks so much for all the reviews, this one is a little harder to do. And I hope its not to confusing for you or me…..I have received wonderful reviews for this story which is strange because I never expected for the story to be read at all. I hope I don't let anyone down but it will not be a very long story. Curious about Ki-rin's well you can google a bit more information about them they are easy to find, or you may visit a page I've set up especially for this story on my profile page.


	7. Page 6

From the darkness came a hand, lifting him, placing a glass to his frail thin lips and he drank.

His spidery fingertips closed in around Severus's wrist to help steady the glass. Slowly he forced his muscle to obey, forced them to work for him as he aided the stranger that offered him the glass. The terrible tension was beginning to leave his body, so that he could breathe easier now.

Snape lowered the Dark Lord's head back against the bed. He was very pale, so vague of color his skin appeared pearly beneath the moonlight.

Severus, simply did not speak. He was not sure of which direction the magic had gone. He was not a wizard suited for magic such as this, it was beyond his level. He was a potion's master, he knew only of medicine, roots and tonics. Not this area of magic. This was best suited for the likes of Dumbledore. But, his old friend was not with him now.

The Dark Lord looked up, after Severus lowered the glass.

"My Lord, can you hear me?" said Severus.

His eyes, Severus notice were not filled with the redness. They were life-like, almost normal, black as coal against the wizard pale skin, but normal and surely not the eyes of Voldemort.

"_He's sleeping_." The words his master mumble back were low, but they came from his own lips, then he rolled onto his side, covered his head and went back to sleep.

* * *

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my imagination. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy!

**Author's Note:** For Story Profile and theme song chosen for this story please visit my profile page under _Spellbinding_.

**Spellbinding**

**Page 6**

* * *

She screamed and shot upright from her sleep. Something was terribly wrong. Why was she here?

She recognized the strange carvings and darkness of the lime stones carved to copy the eerie, long and winding body of snakes. Columns so enormous and stretching all the way up to the cave's ceiling. Ginny, was lying on her back, against the icy stone floor, she got up to her feet. There was little light, and a body of water twisted into long chanels, surrounding the stone slab the was lying on like a moat. The water gave the only light, a green glow, it was soft but strangely it made her feel nothing but sadness as she looked into the reflecting pool.

"Hello." she said and the cave filled with her echo. No one was there. At first, she walked along a stone path, it made a perfect bridge. She used it to cross to the other side of the watery green moat. Ginny cried out another hello, but again no one answered back.

"Tom." she said.

But no one answered her. _The first thing would be to get to safety. _She said to herself. She walked slowly towards one of the waiting tunnels ahead. Her walk became a simple jog as she soon realize the tunnel was moving further and further away. She started to run, and an inky blackness was now closing in all around her fast. She stopped and searched for another way out. Was this even the Chamber she wondered? She wasn't sure? She wasn't sure if these were even the same walls as before, the cave began to fill up with a strange plasma-like ooze. It over took the green lake behind her. Searching above her, she found her only chance, she reached up and grabbed the fang of a stone serpent. She used it to hoist herself up, and struggled to climb onto its back. But the black sludge was spinning all around her now, and it came from everywhere, pouring from the walls, it bubbled up from the floors below, and the ceiling above became a spinning whirlpool. A black void. She screamed for Tom. She was hanging on stone serpents neck, hanging on for dear life, with everything she had. But her fingers were slipping as the snake began to crumble into fragment beneath her. The slimy substance flowed like lava coating her, soaking her gown, pulling her deeper, deeper in. Her hair was painted with it, it forced its way into in her mouth. She gasped for breath and started coughing, choking, she couldn't breath. "Tom!" she screamed "Tom!"

If she was here, if this was the chamber then why could he not hear her. Why wouldn't he come for her. Oh god! She was going to die. She tried to grab hold to something, anything at all. The snake beneath her became nothing but broken rubble "Harry....Harry please!" The floor disengaged like tumbling blocks and she watch them fall into the nothinginess, a bottomless, shadowy void of utter emptiness. Her hand slipped and, she was being swept away ...she screamed.

A dull sun ray struck the corner of her face. She was lying safely beneath her blankets and in her room, in her bed. She had been dreaming. But, after all that had happen the other night, she was lucky to still have her wits about her at all. Ginny looked over at the spare bed in her room, Hermione moved slightly, she was wrapped up with the covers drawn over her head.

Her heart was pounding both in her chest and in her ears, hammering away as the sweet sound of reality told her morning had come. She was sweating, her gown was soak, drenched and clinging to her, but she was dying of thirst.

The late morning sun peeped between the moth eaten curtains of her room. And the Burrow stood perfectly still without and single sound coming from below. It had been a long night, she knew everyone was more than likely beyond exhausted. There was a good chance her family had chosen to sleep in a bit later than planned.

She spoke to soon, as the satisfying smell of bacon crawled from under her bedroom door. Pushing away the last of her nightmare.

She should have guessed, that her mother would be awake and preparing breakfast for everyone. Ginny tossed her legs from beneath her damp covers and her feet made promising contact with a solid hard wooden floor. The ghoul in their attic began clanging the pipes and she could hear her mother shouting at it from below as she made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Oh Good morning sweetheart, glad to see you're up. I can use a hand this morning, we've got a full house to feed. I hope there's enough for everyone." said her mother as Ginny came down the staircase. She was feeling a bit clumsy and shaken still. She heard her mother clearly, but she didn't feel at all normal, it was as if someone had place their hand over her ears. It was a creepy feeling, to even stand, as if her feet wouldn't obey her.

"Alright." she mumbled back to her mother, slowly she shuffled her stubborn body and heavy feet over towards the kitchen table. She found that she even struggled with lifting the butter dish. She turned to take it to her mother. But then something happen so fast that Ginny wasn't exactly sure what she saw. There was a girl, with red hair. She was standing in the kitchen beside her chair at the table. She looked very thin and ghostly.

Ginny was positive she wasn't dreaming anymore, and even more sure that the apparition was standing there, looking back at her. The younger girl smiled at her, stretched out her hand and touched Ginny's. It was like a flash of blinding light, to quick to determine if it was at all real, but definitely to real to say it had not happened at all. The strange weight lifted off of her, it was the burden of something extremely heavy holding her captive, as if it wanted to guide her. But now it was gone and so was the girl. Ginny threw her hands to her mouth and screamed. The butter dish dropped and shattered at her feet.

"Ginny!" shouted Molly, she sat down her mixing bowl and started fussing about the mess she had just made.


	8. Page 7

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything but my imagination. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy!

**Author's Note:** Sorry about the chapters being so mixed up...no idea what happened. But its corrected now. For Story Profile and theme song chosen for this story please visit my profile under Spellbinding.

**Spellbinding**

**Page 7**

* * *

"I'm so sorry mum, please no….I can clean it up."

"No its all right," said Molly. "Well this won't be doing us a bit of good."

Mrs. Weasley pulled out her wand and cleaning up the mess didn't take long, her mother used a repairing charm to mend the broken dish. However, the butter was a complete waste. The strange sensation, that Ginny had been feeling before was gone now and Ginny was able to conduct some control over her arms and legs again. It crossed her mind only once to tell her mother, but the last thing she wanted to do was add another worry to her day.

"Where are you going dear?" asked Mrs. Weasley, the second Ginny opened the front door.

"No…no where, Just outside is all." She needed fresh air. She wanted to leave the tedious work of cooking to her mother. With her brother wedding approaching, Ginny knew she would soon have her fair share of chores. Her mum would likely use a sticking charm to confine them both to the kitchen.

She stepped out into the yard. The afternoon sun was shining brightly over head. However, further off, there was a disturbing formation of clouds brewing. Flashes of lighting would streak free and escape the wind-shaped funnels. It was impossible to see even a scratch of blue sky as Ginny looked out beyond the hills of Catchpole. Thankfully, daylight had escaped the gloomy wrath of the storm and brought it for them to enjoy for a little while, the burrow stood bathe in sunlight. Ginny tried to judge the distance of the storm, she waited, and counted between the rolling thunder clashes and fast streaks of white light as they touched the land. It would reach them by nightfall at the latest. She stroked back her long red hair, grasping it into a large mass at the base of her neck and something glimmered in her right eye, lying there on the narrow road leading up to their front door. It flickered again.

She walked slowly up the pathway, it was bumpy and patchy with holes that had been dug out by the gnomes. The bushes and wild field grass was so overgrown, she had no idea how her mother intended to have the place ready for guest. Ginny looked down and there, lying in the dust and gravel was her silver brush. She picked it up. It was without a doubt hers. She had no idea what had happened to it. Not until the night of Harry's flight, from the muggles. . . .

"_Ginny!…Ginny!.. Get up, quickly now!…wake up and get dressed!" Her mother was beside herself, looking hysterical and wide-eyed. She could tell from the dismay in her voice, that something was wrong. For a moment Ginny did nothing, as she let her eyes adjust to the darkness in her room._

"_What's wrong mum. Where's Harry, . . .where are the others?"_

"_It's freezing in here. Why is your window open?" Her mother wrapped her sweater tightly around herself and made a bee line for Ginny's window, slamming it shut. _"_Why, would you leave that open all night, a boggart could get in!"_

"_But I didn't. . ." Ginny was confused she had no idea that the window was open at all. She started to say so, but her mother was nearly on the verge of tears. "Mum. . . . what's wrong?" she asked._

"_It's the Order, it's Harry…Ooo Ginny it's Harry, something has happened….oh heavens I don't know how they knew, but something has happened. Your father has already gone. The Death Eaters found out, your brothers and the others are missing. . . . Come on, you've got to get up now." Her mother flipped over a woven basket filled with clean linen and tossed Ginny a set of clothing, telling her to move with quickly. _

It wasn't long before they received a second owl from her father, telling them that indeed Harry and the others had been attacked by Death Eaters. Harry was safe for now, but they will formed a search for those that were still lost. The decoy of using the seven potters had ended tragically. Hours went by, dragging like the decades. She tried to comfort her mother, but Molly's fears were without end. Her mother became very frantic screaming rubbish about the Ministry, throwing about lies, hiding the truth of it all.

She even blamed herself, and said how it was all her fault. . ."_Oh God, I should have never allowed them to go!" _she cried, racing out into the dark lawn searching the sky's for any sign of them.

Her mother's fears, they turned into more tears and now she was ranting on and on about a boggart from the Grimmauld's Place. Her mother's abnormal behavior was scaring Ginny. Molly began pulling out objects and things that Ginny had never seen before. Old and peculiar books marked in strange runes. Some, outdated, and very heavy. Ginny opened one and instantly knew it was dark. Her stomach gave a lurch, to think her mother even own such things. Ginny snatched several of them from the table, and begged her Mother not to use them, but Molly shouted at her, hurting her feelings terribly. Ginny stepped away with painful tears in her eyes. She stood and watched as her mother cast a spell on their old clock ; mumbling a constant phrases, with strange words and Ginny had no idea what they meant. Her mother told her to trust her, she said it was only for protection against them.

But if Harry had not arrived when he had, she knew she would have to send word to her father, and beg him to return home. Her mother was not in a right state of mind anymore, and Ginny did not know how to calm her. She was casting spells everywhere and on everything.

At last everyone began to appear. George had been terribly injured and his red blood sprayed droplets on their kitchen floor. It looked as if a duel had taken place right there at the Burrow. Suddenly and before anyone could understand why. Remus grabbed Harry and her brother's body fell to the kitchen floor. Her mother let out a scream, and started spitting foul words at Remus. She was snarling mad. Hagrid shouted too, demanded for him to let Harry go. It was pandemonium.

"_What creature sat in the corner the first time that Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?"_

Ginny thought it was insane question to ask, because there was no time for this. Of course he was Harry who else could he be. Her mother covered her brothers body but her hands were trembling so badly that she was having trouble performing a healing spell for him.


	9. Page 8

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my imagination. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy!

**Author's Note:** Sorry about the chapters being so mixed up...no idea what happened. But its corrected now.

_It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well._

**~Albus Dumbledore**

**Spellbinding**

**Page 8**

* * *

It had taken sometime before peace fell among them. The others were slowly arriving. Bill and Harry were reminiscing the battle. Ginny had walked across the kitchen, meaning to put together sandwiches for everyone. This is when she heard them say, there was a liar among them, that someone had given them away. The atmosphere in the room became as reticent as death approaching and suddenly everyone looked at the other, as if the word liar would appear upon the guilty one.

No one spoke. . .

Who could have deceived them so coldly. . .?

"_No," _Harry said aloud, and they all looked at him, surprised_. "I mean . . . if somebody made a mistake, and let something slip, I know they didn't mean to do it. It's not their fault," _he repeated.

Ginny did not move, for all eyes in the room were not on her. Everyone was completely silent and eyeing Hagrid.

_"We've got to trust each other. I trust all of you, I don't think anyone in this room would ever sell me to Voldemort."_

_"Well said, Harry."_

Ginny released a breath of air she didn't know she had been holding, and she was sick to her stomach now. She wanted to just leave their company and never return, but _fear_ held her there. She would draw attention if she left now, and she knew they would never let her go. So she stayed.

Her hands were shaking as she carried over the platter of fresh sandwiches. But given the situation, everyone excused her jumpy and withdrawn behavior as rattled nerves. _But dear god what had she done?_ Something deep inside told her she was the one. She was the defected link in their plans tonight, and there was no way to close her eyes to the truth. Harry had nearly died tonight, but without thinking much about it at all, she worried more for another boy rather than Harry Potter. She knew that Tom Riddle was out there somewhere; he had come back into her life again, and she was glad for his return. Sadly, she had no idea what she was truly capable of anymore.

Ten minutes had passed and Ginny was still standing outside. holding her brush in her hand, looking down at it; it was the only brush she owned. She examined the retired portkey. It had been a birthday gift last year.

Her mother had used her brush as a backup plan, a last moment's decision. Ginny was very thankful she had not learned about the secret portkey, if she had then she may have left Ted and his wife to their deaths. Yes, she was incredibly thankful. She smiled, and the tears that had been lining her eyes fell.

She closed her eyes and the warmth of the high noon sun washed over her. Ginny felt unworthy of its merciful light. She wanted it to heat up a thousand times more greater, grow hotter than the fires of hell and shrivel her away. Churn her deceitful heart with an inferno of flames, until she was nothing but dust and ash. Then, she would blow away with the storm, and never endanger anyone again.

She was hurting inside….how could she betray her friends this way…

Why was Tom Riddle here? Why had he come back after all this time she wondered. And she. . . waited . . .waited, for soon that the merciful blazing ball above her would answer her prays.

But her sobbing intensified when nothing came to end her miserable life, there was nothing as her tears fell onto her young cheeks. There was no sound. . .only the sound of a sparrow. . . the cackling of a crow; perhaps it was laughing at her. Laughing at her foolish, girlish heart . . . the wind, the wind pushing past her . . . . the sound of a laughter, light and playful. Ginny opened her eyes and standing nearly a yard away was the girl.

The brushed slipped from her hand and plopped into the dirt. Ginny stood very still, too afraid to move.


	10. Page 9

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything but my imagination. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy!

**Spellbinding**

**Page 9**

_It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well._

**~Albus Dumbledore**

* * *

Ginny could easily see the features of the little ghost girl, the resemblance they shared were identical. Their red hair, the matching pale complexion. The girl was wearing a worn and tattered Gryffindor robe. With the lion's emblem upon her side pocket. She remembered the garment perfectly and the the great fuss her mother made over its ruin.

After a moment Ginny took a step forward, and before she could speak, the little girl turned and ran. Ginny chased her. "Wait… stop!" she screamed racing behind the girl, running through the tall grass, dodging gnome holes as she went. "Stop please, come back."

The chase lasted it seemed forever, pulling Ginny further from the safety of the Burrow. She ran as fast a she could, but her speed was simply not greater than that of the girl's. Her chest ached with a burning fire, driving to a point of pain as she struggled to keep up with the younger child. She had forgotten how quick she was as a girl. To trap her was her only way to catch up with her.

But how? She was without her wand, or help, if someone had been with her, then perhaps they could intercept the girl and cut her off.

On they ran, hurrying among the trees, before she soon pludge into the shallow waters of a murky pond. Ginny waded through the water and ripples surrounded her, vibrating from every movement she made. Soon enough, she travel through it, reaching the opposite side where the cattails grew long and tall. But, she couldn't determine in which direction had the girl gone. Ginny knew she to far from the house now. Fear was as close to her as the surrounding water. Elongated blades of grass promised dry land. They were golden from the summer sun, long, dry stems that strecthed on far miles. Ginny darted through the petty waters, she had to hurry back home, what could she had been thinking? Her mother would be beyond panick the moment she discovered her gone from sight, and the strange girl could be a mile ahead of her by now, she was wasting her time.

Her heart was pounding as she she climbed back into the waters, the chilliness of it engulfing her waist. Her gown was completely covered from the muddy sludge from the pond. Then, there was a soft laughter, and she stopped, and looked from side to side. She had heard the girl but where was she? _Was she losing her mind? Was she even awake at all? Are was she still in her room sleeping, dreaming that she was awake?_

Her answer came quickly, and then she saw her. Black and gold with streaks of red. The Gryfinndor. Ginny bolted back from the waters and soon followed the laughter into the thick mass of surrounding trees, She pushed onward deeper into the woods. Avoiding hanging branches, and large roots that grew upward from the ground like gigantic knarled fingers. She looked desperately around for the phantom's laughter. And when it came, it was short, distant and so very familiar... _Where was she? Ginny wondered. Was she hiding, playing these silly little games?_

Her heart thudding like a sledge hammer inside of her chest and her side ached terribly. There was nothing now, silence, nothing but the trees and their branches. The sounds of nature all around her, birds, a squirrel. The sunlight broke through the leaves of the trees, and her eyes followed their dancing light across the dry ground, it was then that she saw her....

The field was open and wide, golden and yeilding more tall blades of grass. The little girl was spinning in circles round, and round. Laughing, playing. She sung and pranced about, as if with something, or someone else. She whirled in merry circles turning slower then faster.

Soaked and exhausted. . .At last Ginny shouted her own name. **"**_**Ginny**_**!" **she screamed,and the little girl stopped abruptly at hearing her name.

Ginny was out of breath, panting and struggling to fill her lungs with air.

The likeness between them remarkably haunting to her. She stared at the illusion, but the thing did not look up, back into her face. No, it only stared down, at the earth. And for some time neither of them said a word. And Ginny's breathing began to ease as she sucked in fresh air.

"Why,why are you running?" she asked the child.

The phantom said nothing and only kept space between them, she would not let the older girl near her, and the more Ginny tried to come closer. The phantom girl would only laughed as if it were a sport of cat and mouse. Quickly she would moved away.

"Do you know what happened?" The little girl's voice came at last, from beneath her bright red hair. Hair that fell like a thick veil, hiding her eyes, her face. She would not look up... she slumped her neck oddly, and gazed down at the ground only.

"Nope. . . no...i don't, do you?" answered Ginny, and then it happened quickly. A beam of lighting came from behind them, just as the child looked up. It was then that Ginny could see her own face staring right back at her. Her own hair, with its fullness so vividly red. But a frown lurked upon the phantom's face.

Ginny took a tiny step back, her legs became limp and lifeless. She had angered the thing some how. "Yes I know, I know what happened. . ." Ginny corrected her lie quickly, she was very shaken now. "I'm so sorry, I didn't understand then…and he was so powerful, but I never knew a boy like him …you remember don't you? The way he was. . . But he didn't mean to hurt you, I mean me. . .he loved me. He told me he would always love me. . . _us_ . . ."

The girl made no reply, she just stared and the horizon behind her, grew as dark as nightfall.

Some how she found courage against the girl's icy glare. "And. . . and I believed him…I still do, I suppose." her voice was growing faint, because she wanted to freak out, literally freak the fuck out. "Where is he?" she demanded the younger girl.

The younger Ginny, then shrugged her shoulders. It was the exact way she often did when someone asked her something she didn't know the answer to. "I couldn't find him," said the younger girl. "I tried…I looked everywhere. I could hear him some nights... crying, he was always crying. And then I learned to sleep. Like he taught me. Do you remember?"

Ginny nodded a reply. Of course she remembered. No matter how she tried, she could never forget anything about Tom. He had taught her a trick of the body and mind, how to sleep so deeply, so sound, that someone would think you were no longer alive. He taught her so that sometimes she could allow him access to her soul, and privelege to her memories of Harry Potter.

"I could find him then, but only when I would sleep." continued the young girl "He was my friend. But then, _he_ came. The strange man, and something happened, I ended up here and our book was destroyed."

"Why are you here?…first Tom and now you, I mean me!. . . _This isn't happening_! Where is Tom. Did he go back there, where is my diary?" Ginny demanded, with anger rising in her voice, and she rushed forward, determined to learn all she could from the other her. But, the girl took equally large steps back.

"STOP IT! . ." shouted Ginny "STOP RUNNING AWAY!. . . " She stood still, and so did the phantom. Her legs were trembling, and a boom came from the sky before her. The storm would not wait until night. It was approaching them now. The thunder rumbled, it was not faint in the least, but vibrated the air, like the roar of a dragon, and it was enough to bring everything back to her. The past....

"You didn't have to do it you know." said the girl "He said that he wished he had never asked me to do does things, they were wrong. He said he's sorry, and he wished he could undo it."

"What sort of wrong? What are you talking about?" asked Ginny.

"The bird, the school rooster the one we straggled to for him."

"The bird…" Ginny thought wildly, and like pieces misplaced they tumbled together for her and the memory of that day came rushing back.

Tom told her that they would take her away. He told her, that the only way to stay with him forever was to join him, to become like him. He told her, that he had been placed there for safe keeping, but that he was always alone. He wrote back to her in the diary each day, and she told him many things. She even told him about the stupid rooster, and how it had chased her all the way to the greenhouse on her first day of school. She hated the stupid bird, but would not have ever killed it, not deliberately.

It was Riddle in the end. He was so upset with her that day. The one thing that would keep them apart was a stupid bird and she was to afraid to kill it. He entered her body, without her permission. This was something he had never done before, not ever and he forced her out onto the school grounds. She had to kill the school bird he said to her. For many reasons, he said. He needed to open the chamber, and he needed blood to do it. He said he would never use her blood to open the secret chamber, that she was special, and that she should be happy that he loved her so much.

She then told him that maybe, if he only needed a little, that she could spare her own blood.

But no, she was like a friend. His only friend in a long time. He had never had a friend that was a girl before and he could never dream of hurting her. But when she realized his power, and what little control she had against him, it terrified her. And when he spoke to the basilisk, it scared her beyond reason. Even though he promised her it would be ok, that the snake would only obey him and never attack her. And that now, they could find a way to be together forever.

But he was not living…and she was. She wanted to stay with him, but it was so scary and she was just a girl. The idea of owning so much love scared her then.

But where was he now? It has been weeks since that day in the shop, and she missed him so much....

She did not share this thought with the girl. "We can go back to the house, and find a way to fix this." said Ginny. "If you'll only come back with me. Please!"

"No, I've come to give you a message. . . Tom needs help."

"Help, why what has happened?" There was a brief pause and Ginny wasn't sure if she was ready for the truth that would follow her question. "So he's really back then.... and that _was_ really him that day in Diagon Alley?" She smiled at the knowledge in knowing it was truly him that kissed her in the tiny room.

The child tilted her head with a questioning look, she had no idea what the other girl was talking about. "Loads has happened." said the phantom. "I cannot stay with you." she looked up into the treetops behind Ginny. The phantom smiled, looking at her older self. Her, standing there in the day, protected by the light. While she would soon return to the darkness "One came…" she said to Ginny. "They heard our cries. And one came to help us."

"One . . . . One what?" asked Ginny

"Them…they... It has asked me to stay with him and watch over him until he has awaken. He's not strong enough, not now. and I have to take care of him. But he needs you too. . . you see, I can't stay long." She clasped her hands together and looked down at her feet and her tattered, shoes. "I will have to leave soon. . . .there's no place for me here. But Tom can't go yet, he can't escape. The stranger that came for us, will not let him leave…he's stronger than Tom. You have to help him when I am gone....you have to be brave for him, you can't let him win." The girl looked up and there were tears along her face. "Do you promise, promise me you'll be there for him."

This was not a favor, nor a request. It was a plea for help. Ginny nodded yes, and started to cry too. She didn't understand any of this, and wasn't sure she wanted to, because it didn't matter, because for Tom she would travel through death and back. "Yes…" she said and wiped her eyes "_I promise_."

Now, she stood alone in the field. With only the grass blowing wildly about her, and in the place where the girl had been standing. The field wild grass was fighting against the wind, swirling, fleeing helplessly against the approaching storm. Ginny then turned, and headed back towards the way she had came, back toward the Burrow.

What she did not know, was that the thing for which the little phantom girl danced and played with, layed in the deepest part of the field, where the dark grass stretched highest and overrun.

What she did not see was a tiny animal, knealing before the storm, it had been watching them. A ki rin, it licked at its hoof clean, and feared nothing within the field, nor the raging heavens above it. It knealed calmly, and was at peace with both the light on one side and the darkness on the other. Because it did not fear the balance of good nor evil. The tiny fawn-like creature watched the two girls has they exchanged their vows and promises. But the Ki rin did not interfere. For now, it would only wait.

**Author's Note:** For the Ki rin, please search this magical beast online, or you may view my profile page, under Ki-rin. For Story Profile and theme song chosen for this story please visit my profile under Spellbinding.


	11. Page 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy, and please read and review! I love reviews!

**Spellbinding**

**Page 10**

_It is our choices…that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. _

~ Dumbledore

* * *

He looked back at the monster in the mirror. His eyes were a hideous red, they did not appear human to him. His skin so, clammy and colorless that he could easily pass for the vampires that he had only read about in the restricted section from the school library. His fingers were so abnormally thin and longer than his own true hands.

He stretched them out and examined the pallid whiteness of his nails and fingertips, pressing them upto his face. Needing to touch his own being, pinch even slap himself just to be sure that this was not some bizarre nightmare.

He ran his hand back and forth along his bald skull. He had always prided himself in the lustrous darkness of his hair and its natural waves. Now there was nothing, not so much as a string. And faint veins could be seen as they traveled beneath his skin. Could he truly have been so stupid in his later life. Could he be the blame for the monster staring back at him now.

But he was responsible and he knew it. There had been strange dreams, nightmares really, for the days he lain unconscious. Dreams of far away lands and unusual places. Many of them he had never seen before and then there had been strange wizards in his nightmares as well. And the one thing he could remember was the feeling of intense thirst and hunger, hunger for more power, more knowledge, more of the dreams that came.

He stood wrapped in a towel and barefoot in the steamy lavatory. He had been there for more than an hour now.

The walls were made of some type of stone, dark and smooth to the touch. Several wall lanterns flooded the steamy bathroom with a soft light, that did little to flatter his hideous appearance. He could feel the tears pouring onto his face. He knew he was wrong to cower away in the shower like a child. He knew it did no good, he would have to face the world and the monster dwelling in him soon. This he could handle, compare to facing her, those were a luxury.

"I suggest you pull yourself together. Should the others discover that you are not Lord Voldemort…."

"**THEN LET THEM…."** shouted Tom.

"That would not be wise." said Severus. He stood in the entrance way, closing the door behind him as he entered the room. He approached Voldemort and staring at him a bit reluctant to speak. Snape had dismissed Bellatrix and the others the moment the Dark Lord had awoken. Severus noticed immediately that the man standing before him was not at all the feared dark wizard.

"What is wrong with my eyes?" asked Tom he place his hand beneath them and widened them more to expose the red pupil looking back from his reflection. "Why can't I change them back."

"It will take practice and time, you are exhausted now my lord and you have been through a great ordeal."

"I have asked you kindly not to call me that." said Tom.

"Yes, and with all do respect my lord, I do recall the request, but it is as I have told you before, the title is necessary for your protection as well as my own. Unless you have formulated a more suitable explanation should it be discovered that you are little more than a fifteen year old boy locked in the body of the most infamous wizard our world has known since Salzar himself." Replied Snape. He stretched out his hand and handed Tom a cup and saucer of clear tea. "Drink! It will calm you, we shall begin your training within the hour. You will have to learn to disguise who you truly are. Your beloved Bellatrix can smell disloyalty from miles, should she even suspect something has happen to _her _Tom.

"I am not her Tom…" he said, and his eyes caught the full sight of the older man, with a look that delivered a warning. Tom shoved the cup aside, and its contents splashed over the bathroom counter. He turned, grabbed the edge of the sink and lowering his head. His breathing was deep and very troubled.

Severus's voice hushed, the room became strangely, uncomfortably quiet. Severus then crept slowly to the center of the room and the steam was beginning to diminish as the air around them cleared. Severus stood frozen as he studied the back of him, and for the first time ever in his life, he reached out and used the power of legilimens and invaded the mind of the Dark Lord.

Tom, was unaware of the invasion. He wanted to forget about the older man in the room with him all together. For the moment he only care about one thing, and that was he had to find a way to Ginny, he had to find a way to her. To get her and himself to safety and completely out of the reach of the insane old man while he was lying dormant for now.

Severus said nothing. He lifted his cup to his lips and sipped slowly. He could see this would end in disaster. He now knew that Tom held the mind of a teenage boy, and did not want to accept or understand the magnitude of his role in this life. But should he go lolly-dotting about shouting foolishness of love and escaping…..

Severus could also see that the boy, who was not a boy at all, was solely devoted to protecting the Weasley girl.

Tom ran a hand over his bald head and then down his neck.

Severus read the fear in his mind as clearly as a page from a book. The tiny breaths of air Tom made churned into a soft weeps.


	12. Page 11

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy, and please read and review! I love reviews!

**Spellbinding**

**Page 11**

* * *

Wordlessly Severus moved closer toward the Dark Lord, and his sudden desire to help this frighten boy was greater than that devotion he shared with Draco.

Draco, was stubborn. And he already possessed a father's guidance, therefore he never cared for Snape's concern, or willingness to help him in his time of need and despair. Tom, on the other hand shared a sort of connection with the older man. Severus, understood the emptiness of being from this world and without a proper father. He also admired the boy's determination to defend the love of his life even if he knew he would very well die from loving her. Their kind, death eaters, did not love, just as the otherside simply did not hate.

With his teacup in his hand Severus, stood next to him. He knew the boy was truly terrified. But this was a bit disturbing on the mind, even for the likes of Severus.

He had often attempted to comfort Draco as a fathered when he had been chosen to carry out the orders from the Master. Severus stretched out his arm and grasped the boy's shoulder in an attempt to quiet his sobbing.

How strange was life? That now he stood here, once again with the weight of protecting another young wizard. Who strangely, was the master himself.

Tom had never once accepted anyone's affection other than Ginny's. As a student he often played favorites with his teachers, usually with a hidden agenda always at heart. It was usually to gain knowledge or some desired skill that was often considered beyond the norms of an instructor. For Tom Riddle there was never a desire for anyone remotely like a father, and he never accepted or needed guidance until now.

Severus lifted up the other teacup from the counter and held it for him to take.

"Drink it, it will help, you have my word. The sooner you calm yourself the sooner we shall begin your training, you must learn to conceal your secret. You must also master the veil of deception. If you truly mean to save your Ginny you must remain strong. For her, that is true love."

Tom sipped the tea cautiously, and allowed the strange brew to overcome his pounding fear. He stared absent mindedly into the cup as the Professor began to lecture him in the mastery of occlumency and when they would begin. He spoke of the Illusioners Charm, and the Professor emphasized the need to master both in order to protect himself against others. He was not to share the truth with anyone.

Tom began to feel the mixture from the warm brew in his cup burn in his blood, caress his skin. And the words that were being spoken by the professor were whispers very welcomed. His body trembled with ecstasy of the magic he'd have to master if he hoped to protect Ginny.

* * *

As the days went by, Many doors of knowledge became open to him. he soon learned to conceal Voldemort's appearance with that of his own, which was what he had hoped for. He had no idea how he could have ever faced Ginny looking the way he did.

He learned many things from the professor in a short time. Most of his knowledge with wand had become a bit rusty and somewhat forgotten after being shut away so long. But they quickly returned and he happily accepted new skills and advanced spells. He did not question or speculate on why certain spells had to be done with a particular fashion. He simply did as he was told.

* * *

Although deep in his heart, he knew it would be short lived, Snape had never had a more determined pupil.

"NO!" shouted Snape, he lowered his own wand and marched across the floor. "You must target your aim directly for your victim's heart." He walked over towards Tom, who was standing in the middle of the large room. Severus took the young man's hand and positioned it until it was at a perfect degree. "Now, do it again!" Said Snape. And it went on this way for hours. From morning until late into the night. Their breaks slowly became longer between sessions as Severus became more satisfied with his progress.

Their long hours and days away from the Manor had not gone unnoticed but no one would dare question anything of their time away. To satisfy the other death eaters curiosity, Tom would in the beginning go unmasked for a time, until they became more accustomed to seeing him as the younger Tom Riddle. He avoided the wide-eyed witch he'd come to know as Bellatrix as often as he could. And when she began to impose with his lack of attention for her. He assigned her to the task of watching the Prisoner's of the Malfoy Manor until further instructions were given.

Today, he stood in an archway. This particular Manor had become the temporary home for him and the Professor.

The Professor had told him that it could not be detected by anyone, say they be muggle or magic and that it was well protected. It was one of the many homes owned by Albus Dumbledore. Tom stood in the doorway and stared absently into the falling rain. The drops fell softly like musical notes upon the soil and the leaves of the trees. The memory of Ginny haunting his heart, just as the rain haunted the land. However, to think of her was soothing to him. He signaled for their messenger owl. He attached a letter to its claw and sent it out into the rain. His biggest pain was that he could not bare the idea hurting Ginny. The communication between them had become breathtaking and motivated him when nothing else seemed to matter. He told Severus that she still loved him, and that was all that mattered to him. And that sometimes it felt as if it were the only reason he existed at all. He begun secretly sending and receiving owls from her, since the start of school, it was against the Professor's wishes of course. But Severus, understood and saw to it that she received each and every one of his letter's safely as promised.


	13. Page 12

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything but my imagination and whatever else is in this story that doesn't make sense. I was inspired by J.K. Rowlings wonderful world. Enjoy, and please read and review! I love reviews!

**Spellbinding**

**Page 12**

_If it be now, 'tis not to come; if it be not to come, it will be now; if it be not now, yet it will come; the readiness for love._

_~ Shakespeare_

_

* * *

_

The night was cool, dark and starless, with a slight breeze from the lake that lifted her long red hair. The moon spied down on her from a cluster of frail clouds for only a moment. Not for very long, just long enough to light the path that lead her way.

She stepped from the cave and stood by the riverbank. She lifted her hood to cover her face. Her cloak was long and flowing like the wind. Black like the shadows behind her in the cave. Ginny watched him move about from the windows of the house. She lifted the omnioculars to her face and followed his every movement, like a hawk.

They were her brother's, the very one's he'd used during the Quidditch World Cup years ago and they were a bit out of focus, she adjusted one knob on top, and gave the tiny metal wheel a spin. They zoomed in well enough.

It was late, well past midnight when she set her plans into motion. Severus would have to leave the Headmaster's office precisely at midnight, he always did to search the grounds of the school and make sure no one was out of bed, and wandering about.

Amazing she thought, he employs himself as Headmaster and yet he still takes a fancy to patrolling the corridors like a second ranking teacher. To bad for him, that she was the youngest sister of the two biggest rule breakers Hogwarts had seen in ages. Fred and George, knew the secrets of Hogwarts better than the Bloody Barron himself. Ginny timed it perfectly and used the hidden exit behind a wall portrait of the third floor. A portrait, that allowed her entrance into the Headmaster's office .

It was a a bit uncomfortable, waiting there until the coast was totally clear. But is was not until Professor Snape's midnight stroll, then she made a dash for his fireplace, she had no way of knowing if it would indeed lead her to Tom, but she had to try. She could only guess that their new Headmaster would surely have a way to reach him should the need arose. It was a hunch really, but there was nothing else to go on. And now that she found him. She wanted to punch him and kiss him at the same time. For weeks now he kept her at bay, saying that it simply was not safe. That she would be better protected there behind the walls of Hogwarts, until he made the arrangements to safely move her away, where she could never be found. Not even by him.

Professor Snape, was to have her suited and boarding a ship by this week's end. She was to depart from London, and head towards the eastern sea.

How bold could one person be, to think he could just ship her off like some ruddy package of basil. And what about her friends? What about Harry, Hermione and her brother Ron. Didn't he care about the danger they were under in these past weeks. What about her mother and family, did he seriously think she would simply abandon them, or him for that matter. She had finally made up her mind. She was going to hit him. Right in that wily, scheming little, half-muggle chin of his.

Sly as a fox she began to climb the wooden planks that boarded the walkway from the lake. Her sneakers were making a noisy clumping sound as she tiptoed, so she stopped for a moment and removed them.

Now, in her bare feet and without the weight of tennis slowing her movement she moved quicker. She loved it….she loved the idea of doing something so daring and so completely independent and of her own free will. Take that Hermione! You're not the only witch with a bit of girly know-how, she thought inwardly. She climb onward towards the lake house. She knew he was completely unsuspecting of her arrival.

He loved it….and smile to himself about her. He loved the breathtaking innocence of her, nothing frighten her, or if it did he could never tell. It was the one thing he loved so much about her. She was so brave, when no one in the world expected her to be; not even him.

He knew about her….Snape had delivered him a letter only seconds ago.

_Dear Mr. Riddle,_

_It seems as though, my office has been invaded by an intruder. _

_Good thing I've set those charms in place when I took office. _

_It seems that you may be receiving an unexpected visit from a rather _

_determined Miss Ginny Weasley. Do let her know that I do not take kindly _

_to my office being invaded, regardless of her intentions and that will be _

_fifty points from Gryffindor. Enjoy your evening._

_Severus_

Tom watched her from the foe-glass upon his writing desk. He knew the moment her beautiful feet touched the first stone upon the riverbank, that he would never send her back. He'd been wishing for her for so long. To hold her, to see how beautiful she had become. He loved her to much to endanger her life, if even for a moment. Her safety was the only thing that mattered to him. She should not have come to him, but now that she _was_ here, so close, he'd die before he'd sent her away tonight.

Riddle knew the layout of this entire house, every room, every entrance, but he was amused with watching her attempts to enter undetected. Wasn't he suppose to be the darkest wizard alive, had she gone completely mental…he laughed as he watch her stumble over a window shrub, and started swearing beneath her breath. She made a such a lovely burglar, it made him laugh harder, when her red hair tumbled about her face as she landed on her stomach. Her clumsiness trigger so much excitement him.

He doused the light, and hide as he heard the French doors from the kitchen give a sudden click.


	14. Page 13

Ok, so my lovely's,

I've added another story and now I'm seeking reviews.

It is a Lucius/Hermione _Love Story_, and not really a story for smut readers, because I dont really enjoy writing smut. Not that I can't, I just dont enjoy it!

Please give my story **Smashed** a try and tell me what you think. If there are misspelled words I would like to know. . .If you like it, I would love to know. . . If you don't like or love it. . .then lie to me and read something else.

Sorry about the commas if they are out of place, cause they probably are. I always have a hard time with those.

Look for **Smashed **in my profile, under _currently working on_.

Thanks,

_The Ghoul In Pajamas_


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